Blues must carry on without Tarasenko, host Blue Jackets

(Sports Network) - The St. Louis Blues lost more than a game their last time out as standout rookie Vladimir Tarasenko went down with a concussion.

The Blues will try to get along without the talented Russian forward when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets in Saturday's meeting at Scottrade Center.

St. Louis has lost two straight on the heels of a three-game winning streak and is coming off Wednesday's 1-0 overtime setback at Colorado. Tarasenko's injury came at the 8:35 mark of the third period after taking a hard hit from Colorado forward Mark Olver.

On Friday, the Blues placed Tarasenko, who also suffered facial lacerations, on injured reserve. Tarasenko has six goals and six assists this season, placing him third in NHL rookie scoring.

David Jones scored the game-winner with 16.4 seconds left in overtime to lift the Avalanche to the 1-0 win at Pepsi Center. Jaroslav Halak saved 19-of-20 shots for the Blues, who were blanked for the first time this season en route to their second straight setback.

St. Louis outshot Colorado, 31-16, in regulation, but was unable to break through against Avs goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who turned away all comers to send the game to an extra session.

"We just kept going at them," St. Louis forward T.J. Oshie said. "We played well until the overtime. I thought our overtime was awful hockey."

The game marked Halak's first action in three weeks after dealing with a groin injury. He is expected to get the start again on Saturday.

Saturday's tilt is the first test on a three-game homestand for the Blues, who are just 3-4-1 as the host this season.

Columbus will try to win consecutive games for the first time this season when it takes the ice on Saturday. The Blue Jackets ended a three-game losing streak with Thursday's 3-2 decision in Detroit. The victory was the first win (1-3-0) on a six-game road trip for Columbus, which is 2-6-0 as the guest this season.

Vinny Prospal scored with just 24.7 seconds to play as the Blue Jackets downed the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena. Derek Dorsett posted a goal and an assist while R.J. Umberger also scored for the Blue Jackets. Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves in the win.

"It's a huge win for us tonight, especially taking one in this town," said Dorsett. "We had some intensity tonight and came out hard. This was a fun game to be a part of."

Columbus, though, did lose center Artem Anisimov to an apparent head injury in the game after he was taken off on a stretcher following his head hitting the ice.

On the play early in the second period, Anisimov tripped over Detroit's Ian White and fell to the ice. As he was falling, Detroit's Kyle Quincey also fell and his elbow came down on the head of Anisimov. After several minutes on the ground, his head and neck was immobilized and he was taken into the locker room on a stretcher.

It was later announced that he was awake and responsive and had been taken to Detroit Medical Center for further evaluation. Anisimov was released from the hospital on Friday and was sent back to Columbus. He is officially listed by the team as day-to-day.

St. Louis beat the Blue Jackets, 4-1, in Columbus on Jan. 31 and the Blues have won three of four and eight of 10 in this series. Columbus has lost five of seven and 13 of its last 16 games at Scottrade Center.